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Obviously idols are dangerous~
Didn't you see them taking down those soldiers with their ninja like reflexes, killer ribbons, heart taser stick, and lightsabers?
What happen if they recruit and train more idols? The government would have to deal with a whole army of moe soldiers.

Any theories about why no one, particularly Crunchyroll, chose to license AKB0048? A couple of news reports about their US concert tour suggests they have a reasonably large following over here. Maybe AKB's management demanded too high a licensing fee?

Rather surprisingly, the first episode is up on YouTube with translations in multiple languages. Given how often anime gets removed from YouTube over infringement, I'm surprised these videos have yet to receive take-down requests. Even more, it's often the Japanese music rights holders that submit these requests, making their apparent benign acceptance of AKB0048's carriage even more puzzling.

They want to expand and try and take on the KPop giants head on. Which is effectively a daunting task since K-Pop got at least a 5 year head start. AKB48 got a long road ahead of them to gain back their place in the Asian flavour of the foreign world.

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Old McDonald had a farm...Eyey Eyey O...And on his farm he had a Khzithak...Eyey Eyey O...With a ARHHFAHHAAAAAAAAARRRGIIIAAA HELP AAAUUU HELP! IT'S GNAWING OFF MY...

It'll take much for j-pop to obtain an equal footing (even with Utada and Angela Aki) on a global scale, given that the Korean government and the entertainment industry is very aggressive and keen in pushing the "hallyu" wave abroad and maintaining a supreme lead in Asian entertainment.

Also, like most Japanese idol groups and individuals (whose diligence reminds me of the geisha tradition), it would require some effort on AKB's part to dispel many of the popular misconceptions and prejudices plaguing the industry's image, including allegations of exploitation and sexism.

Despite AKB's domestic prominence, it seems that the likes of Crunchyroll and other distributors have possibly taken a "watch-and-see" stance to see if the show could be a potential hit, as the show uses original material whereas most titles this season are adaptations of popular works.

It's not like Jpop even need to have a foot hold globally.
Korea is aggressively promoting Hallyu because their own industry don't make enough money to support them. Japan have no motivation to branch out so there's no reason to. Even if they stay in Japan, Jpop groups still make more money than most of these "international" hallyu stars...which is why their idols are migrating to Japan like there's a flood in Korea tbh....<__<

But it's just f*cking dumb they're crippling their industry. If they want to get rid of prejudice, allow fans to post AKB (or just Jpop in general) PVs, documentaries, shows etc, and even put Beginner original ver feature on their YT channel. If you search AKB, the top ones are Baby, Ponytail, and Heavy rotation, and no one is going to think that HR was the video/song that brought in more fangirls to AKB that before. They'll think it's fanservice shizz and have a misconception of AKB.

If they're waiting to see if it's a hit then it's not bad. They'll eventually license it then.

I'm probably too old to make this observation, but I don't see any greater exposure given to Korean groups in the US than I do to Japanese ones. I don't see how any of that pertains to why AKB0048 isn't licensed in the US. I suspect most Americans outside the Asian-American community have no knowledge of any of these groups.

I also don't think the adaptation part makes much sense either. I'd bet the vast majority of Crunchyroll viewers have only a very limited knowledge about which shows are adaptations and which are not. I certainly wouldn't know without some research that Tsuritama is an anime-original and Natsume Yuujinchou is not. And I'm probably a lot better-informed about matters like this than the average Crunchyroll subscriber. Yet both of those are carried on Crunchyroll, while AKB0048 is not. As an outside observer I'd have guessed that AKB0048 would be a much more popular show on Crunchyroll than Tsuritama or Space Brothers. Wouldn't the mostly teen-aged audience for Crunchy be a priori more interested in a show about cute girls and idol singers than a show about a thirty-year-old guy who wants to become an astronaut, or four boys who take up fishing?

Any theories about why no one, particularly Crunchyroll, chose to license AKB0048?

I'd guess it mostly has to do with the channels AKB0048 is on. I'm pretty sure Crunchyroll deals directly with TV stations to secure the streaming rights (people have come to expect shows from them simply because their first broadcast is on TV Tokyo, for instance - not that it works for every single show, but it's become a pretty reliable train of thought). On the other hand, this isn't being shown on any major channel: tvk is the first one to show it, which may not make negotiations for the streaming rights easy. Should Quarkboy read this and realize I'm completely off, he should correct me by all means.

It also sort of works out when you consider that the Youtube video you've posted hasn't been taken down yet - you often see TV stations listed as the company responsible for their removal. Though obviously, King Records, who seem to be on top of the production committee, could have it taken down as well, and I'm surprised they haven't yet considering they're one of the most active producers in monitoring Youtube usually. Maybe it's in their own interest to have a broader coverage through Internet streaming (even by 'illegal' means) as they haven't managed to strike major channels for the TV broadcast - I've always wondered how much anime titles could benefit from it, and whether certain producers might decide to let it intentionally slip by sometimes...

Despite AKB's domestic prominence, it seems that the likes of Crunchyroll and other distributors have possibly taken a "watch-and-see" stance to see if the show could be a potential hit, as the show uses original material whereas most titles this season are adaptations of popular works.

Crunchyroll claims they bid on every anime that comes out, so the fact that they didn't get it suggests the producers aren't interested or want too much money.

I'd guess it mostly has to do with the channels AKB0048 is on. I'm pretty sure Crunchyroll deals directly with TV stations to secure the streaming rights

Crunchy has been pretty diligent about carrying noitaminA telecasts after Funimation dropped them, and they're telecast by FujiTV. I always thought the streaming rights were purchased from the production committees, and that the stations were involved only to the extent that they had an interest in the show via membership on the committee.

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Originally Posted by Utsuro no Hako

Crunchyroll claims they bid on every anime that comes out, so the fact that they didn't get it suggests the producers aren't interested or want too much money.

I tend to lean to Utsuro no Hako's theory, but that's what led me to ask about why they seem so indifferent to YouTube streaming. Demanding too high a royalty for carriage on Crunchy then ignoring pirated versions on YouTube doesn't make much sense to me from a business perspective. At least if you licensed the show to Crunchyroll or Hulu you'd get some cash in return. Allowing fansubs to be carried on YouTube means reaching a much larger audience but getting nothing in return in terms of rights fees. Perhaps they believe the much wider exposure on YouTube will pay off in greater sales of albums, etc.? That might make sense for AKB's management, but what about Satelight? For the typical anime, does the animation studio share in the revenues from ancillary products like music CDs? Even if that's not generally true, I could see AKB0048 being a special case. It doesn't seem implausible that profits from sales of the music could outstrip profits from DVD/BD sales.

Crunchyroll claims they bid on every anime that comes out, so the fact that they didn't get it suggests the producers aren't interested or want too much money.

But I find it strange that this show is being broadcast by lesser stations, despite the record company's reputation which could've earned the show decent late-night airtime block with a major broadcaster, or if they choose, utilize online streaming.

So..AKB is paying Kawamori and the top class voice actresses and production staffs crap load of money in production..but they're not pulling for strings for big stations, simulcast, or online streaming...

........i'm so confuse right now...
what's their purpose for this then? Is this just to spend money and give AKB fans a present?..if so, they wouldn't need hire big names in anime industry and instead use the real girls to voice their anime counterparts.

The severity of the hatred toward Idols makes me wonder just what happened in the past. The description I read said that some war forced mankind to abandon Earth, and after this art and entertainment was banned. I can't begin to guess just what must have happened to not only make art/entertainment the scapegoat but actually create that level of rage.

One thing I wonder is if any of the candidates will end up getting a boyfriend and being disqualified. This is one aspect of AKB48 and many other idols that I don't get, the ban on love. You want them to sing passionately about the joy and wonder of flying but you clip their wings. It'd be one thing if they simply put severe restrictions on the romantic relationships, requiring that they be private and chaste, keeping it innocent and holding back the passion; for many of the girls I'd consider that appropriate anyway, at their ages they'd do better to take their time and develop the relationship and not go too far too fast. But to simply say that love is forbidden is just cruel imho.

^
There is a reason why that rule exists: unlike in the West, where celebrities call the shots and have the right to get a boyfriend or marry at anytime they want or do something crazy (like getting drunk in public), in Japan, image and reputation are everything and intertwined, and moreso if one's a public figure, especially as an entertainer.

Idols have to be remain single and not involved in any sort of relationship within the duration of their contract, purely because I believe fans expect their idols to be the closest thing to an 'ideal and pure dream girl' and the last thing a fan needs (especially those who are jealous, or worse, obsessive) is something unexpected like a boyfriend from out of nowhere.

And then, even if the idol and her boyfriend manages to keep the relationship secret, sooner or later it would come out into the open (or if the boyfriend, family or her non-showbiz friends talk too much), and next thing the girl finds is her idol career torpedoed by the hard-core fans (as they can be very vengeful if wronged or anything that shatters their preconceived image of her) and the tabloids (the so-called "sports" tabloids).

For an idol to have a boyfriend means getting fired. Which is why Yuka had to break off and sacrifice the relationship and move on as a would-be idol.

Fortunately, compared to other groups (which are largely controlled by management whims) AKB members have the free option to graduate if they so needed to pursue a relationship or further their careers and move on, but those who break the "no boyfriend" cardinal rule are given the option to apologize (if they want to remain) or resign (this happened to two former long-time members who were caught in a bad situation with one involved with a romantic liason, and another acting as an accomplice).

Furthermore, some members admitted that they have no time to pursue romantic relationships for the time being, as they're preoccupied with their work.

Wasn't one of the bad situation related with Hiroi Ooji of Sakura Taisen fame? Or am I confusing with someone from another idol group?

Sorry if I was unclear about it; a few months ago former members Natsumi Hirajima and Rumi Yonezawa resigned from the group because the former was secretly trying to keep her relationship secret in complete violation of her contract agreement, but they made the mistake of uploading a cellular phone picture containing her and the boyfriend to yFrog, and then someone found out and leaked the pictures.

Well, it's not like I'm really informed about this, so mistakes would be natural. After all, I'm not really into idols, AKB48 and the likes. I'm just following the series since it has an absurd but enjoyable premise. I doubt I'm part of the target audience anyway...

Actually I doubt the whole ban on dating thing...Itano Tomomi and EXILE Takahiro had been linked for 1 year and Oshima Yuko has long been linked to Eiji Wentz, and the tabloid got nothing on her because Yuko has been going home with a cardboard box on her head
Rumi Yonezawa was dating for 4 yrs when they found her picture....and because she's actually dumb enough to tweet something that indicate she has been dating. I highly doubt no one in the management don't know about her dating for 4 yrs.

It's more like they don't care till it get out. Actually because of Itano Tomomi's rumor, she quickly declined in popularity and top most hated voted by women. Since most of her fans are girls, they came to hate her due her link with Takahiro, who's very popular with teen girls....

So yeah I think there's a legit reason why they ban dating. It's not just the reputation, the management have to worry about how the fans of both side would react too if the boyfriend is a star with alot of teen fangirls that tend to jealousy.
Tho I really dislike how idol girls have this "ban" while JE boys whore around town banging AV stars like there's no problem.....

Well, it's not like I'm really informed about this, so mistakes would be natural. After all, I'm not really into idols, AKB48 and the likes. I'm just following the series since it has an absurd but enjoyable premise. I doubt I'm part of the target audience anyway...

Let's just say we have to set a distinction between real life and fiction, that whatever happens in reality should not affect in any way our enjoyment of the show.

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EDIT: been receiving tweets from the official about switching over to BS11, but here's the possible/tentative upcoming episode titles:

Quote:

3話 星屑オーディション
二次オーディション話
Episode 3: Stardust Audition

4話 その努力裏切らない
7名がオーディションに合格、研究生の厳しさを知る
Episode 4: I Will Not Betray Their Efforts